The All Progressives Congress (APC), has said that the Presidency of Nigeria is not for sale to the highest bidder.
In a statement issued by its Acting National Publicity Secretary yesterday, Mr. Yekini Nabena, said while congratulating the former Vice President over his emergence in the primary conducted last Saturday by the leading opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), it is doing so in keeping with its belief in participatory democracy and ‘‘The electorates right to freely choose from candidates in any political contest.”
It however stated its belief that in assessing candidates to be voted for during elections, Nigerians will normally consider the candidate’s background and antecedents.
But on the emergence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, the spokesperson said that there are pertinent question to ask the PDP candidate in respect of the public office held in the past.
Said he, “In the case of Atiku, the question to ask is what his scorecard in public office was? Regrettably, Atiku’s scorecard is abysmally low and he has proven to be an untrustworthy and unreliable character. A case in point is Atiku’s revealing altercation with his former boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo which exposed the level of corruption Atiku was enmeshed in.”
Mr. Nabena said that on the international level the former Vice President, “has been reportedly place on the global watch list of the United States of America and has avoided travelling to the US to avoid arrest and prosecution over a money-laundering and corruption case in that country.”
According to him, the character trait of the former Vice President is not what the people of Nigeria “will be proud to vote for as our President, come 2019.”
He contended further that in comparison with incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari who he describes “as having over the years been consistent and with a principled stance on party affiliations.”
The contrary, he observed is the case with the former Vice President who he said has since 1999, “moved around different political parties – PDP, ACN, PDP, APC now PDP, all in his blind and desperate pursuit of his ambition – The Presidency of Nigeria adding, it is therefore very clear that if Atiku loses the presidential election in 2019, he will again defect from the PDP to another political platform.”
The APC spokesman also accused the PDP flag bearer of having been known over the years as someone who he alleged, has entrenched the undemocratic practice of buying votes of delegates.
He alleged the former Vice President of having spent several millions of dollars during the APC National Convention in 2014, to buy delegates votes and emerged third, after Buhari and Rabiu Kwankwaso.
“On Sunday, he reportedly bought over virtually all the PDP delegates and was declared winner of the PDP presidential primaries.”
The APC spokesperson argued and reasoned further that with the huge expenses allegedly spent by the PDP flag bearer to secure the PDP ticket, “he will be forced to recoup his investments from the public treasury.”
“How will Atiku recoup his “investment” if not from the public treasury should he win the Presidency,” he asked.
On President Muhammadu Buhari’s emergence as the party’s flag bearer, Nabena said that the later does not spend a kobo on delegates as he banks only on his proven personal integrity.
On the source of former Vice President Atiku’s resources he asked a rhetorical question.
“ In any case, how did a retired Customs Officer acquire so much wealth to fund his several presidential bids? The source of his wealth is very questionable and his financial resources are definitely ill gotten.”
The party said further that, the country has had enough of “corrupt, cash and carry politicians. That was why in 2015 they came out en-masse and elected a clean and transparent man in Muhammadu Buhari to clean the Augean stable adding, “the candidature of Atiku Abubakar will bring back the undesired lots and their practices which Nigerians have long rejected and forgotten.”
Still on the choice of the former Vice President, he said that the Nigerian electorate deserves to be given a choice of decency, integrity and honour and not dirt, corruption, and infamy.
“ The choice between Buhari and Atiku is one between light and darkness; between positive change and business as usual; between transparency and under the table dealings.
In conclusion, he said that as the nation prepares for the forthcoming 2019 elections, “the citizens owe it a duty to make a choice between a presidential candidate/change agent who is rebuilding the country and refocusing our national priorities and attitudes on one hand, and another candidate who along with his gang of co-looters stole the country’s commonwealth and brought the country to its knee.”
